Rodent have plaqued mankind for centuries bringing disease and pestilance into major population centers and competing directly with mankind for food either by direct consumption or by fouling the stored materials with their droppings, dirt, and parasites.
There have been many solutions proposed in the past to control or reduce rodent populations, and the most effective to date has been the use of poisoned baits.
The technique employed by users of these baits is to place the bait in an area infested by rodents, particularly along the walls in areas were rodents have been seen traveling in.
The rodents passing through the area detect the poisoned bait and perceiving it as a food source, consume the poison causing their demise.
Some of the prior art devices which have been developed to contain and deliver rodenticides are characterized by U.S. Pat. Nos. 1,561,644 11/1925 Hanson . . . 43/131, 2,480,724 8/1949 Feussner . . . 43/131, 2,568,168 9/1951 Query . . . 43/131, 2,626,089 1/1953 Osfar . . . 222/561, 2,690,029 9/1954 Mullen . . . 43/131, 2,725,664 12/1955 Mullen 43/131, 3,352,053 11/1967 Anderson . . . 43/131, 4,026,064 5/1977 Baker . . . 43/131, 4,349,982 9/1982 Sherman . . . 43/131 and Foreign Patent 648419 7/1937 Federal Republic of Germany . . . 43/131.
These devices are defective for the following reasons: they are bulky, cumbersome, fragile, susceptable to rupture and in cases to spillage of their contents and, they present a potential hazard to children and domestic animals. Most of the devices only afford the illusion of protecting the bait from contaminating the environment.
On the whole, prior art devices do not advance the state of the art of rodenticide containment and will not fully meet the current laws of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and will in most cases endanger children and pets if placed in areas that are accessible to them.
An object of the present invention is to improve the state of the art by improving on the SHERMAN PATENT and provide an even more tamper-proof device that will withstand indoor and outdoor usage and will withstand high traffic and abuse in food processing areas, warehouses, farms, schools, and homes.
A further object of the instant invention is the provision of a tamper-proof rodent bait container that has a system of internal and external baffles that will prevent children from reaching into the box to tamper with its contents.
Another object of the instant invention is to provide a tamper-proof bait station in which the design of the cover protects the contents from weather and the elements, keeping the bait palatable for a longer period of time.
Still another object of the invention is to provide a tamper-proof baiter with a novel hidden method of closure that will foil or inhibit the possibility of unauthorized persons from opening the unit and exposing its contents.
Still another object of the instant invention is to provide a tamper-proof bait station with internal baffles that direct the rodent to the farthest point in which the bait is located, thereby insuring the least possible contact of the bait by unauthorized personnel or non-target species.
Yet another object of the invention is to provide a tamper-proof baiter whose floor is designed with a slope that moves the rodent poison to a desired position within the structure, collecting it and securing it, out of the reach of anyone trying to reach in from the outside.
And finally, the invention provides a method of floor mounting, that when the baiter is secured to the floor, will allow easy removal of the unit for cleaning and servicing, but will inhibit or foil movement of the baiter due to the tampering of small children, domestic pets, wildlife, or in the normal day to day activities of a commercial establishment.
Rodents, being nocturnal in nature, feed in low or no light environments and require the perception of night in order to feel comfortable feeding. This "security" of night feeding stimulates the rodents natural instincts and insures that they consume more food (or rodenticide) upon coming in contact with the food source.
With the introduction of "one feed" rodenticides, bait stations should be replenished more often and a minimum of this powerful poison should be used on each servicing of the device.
This insures the most economical use of expensive baits and the least possible exposure to baits by non target species. It also allows the best possible use of poisoned baits in ridding an area of large numbers of rodents.
To practically fulfil the need for more servicing of the baiter and, to provide the rodent with a habitat that imitates night conditions, a bait station, constructed of materials that are translucent, allowing the user to see in and measure visually the amount of bait left, to audit rodent activity and, to provide the rodent that enters the baiter with the illusion of night, would significantly increase the efficasy of the entire baiting system.
These and other objects, advantages and novel features of the invention will become apparent from the following description of the invention when considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.